Counterpane, Stenciled

Date1826

Artist/Maker Emily Morton (1810-1879)

MediumPaint on a cotton ground

Dimensions103" X 104"

Credit LineBequest of Mrs. Jason R. (Grace H.) Westerfield

Object number1974.609.28

DescriptionThis is a white T-shaped cotton bed cover stenciled in floral designs. The counterpane is made of three pieces of textile sewn together, with lower two corners cut out for bedposts. The design is stenciled in pinks, blues, greens, and yellows in a central design consisting of a bowl on a tall base from which flowers on long stems grow. Inner borders consist of individual vases and pots of flowers on three sides, all positioned to face or grow toward the center motif. Outer borders consist of isolated floral sprigs and a narrow meandering vine with small red flowers. The counterpane has narrow hems on edges and is unlined.
Label TextEarly American stenciled fabrics are rare because they were made at home and were not produced commercially. The process of applying colors by hand through openings cut in parchment, paper, or metal stencils is an ancient method of fabric decoration. The designs and method of decoration used on this bedcover are most closely allied to theorem painting, an art that many girls practiced while attending school.
InscribedA paper label sewn to the bedcover upon receipt is inscribed in 19th-century script, "Hand painted by / Miss Emily Morton in / 1826 aged sixteen years. / Mrs J. C. Barrett." Another later paper label written in green ink reads "Painted by hand -- by / Miss. Emily Morton, aged / 16 years-- Done in 1826 / Miss. Morton lived in / Thorndyke, Maine --."
ProvenanceA handwritten note sewn onto the coverlet indicates that it was once owned by the maker’s daughter, Hannah Morton Coffin (d. 1908), the wife of John C. Barrett. The next recorded owner of the coverlet is Grace Hartshorn Westerfield, who left it to Colonial Williamsburg upon her death in 1974.

History of Maker:

Emily Morton (1810-1879) was born to Thomas Morton (1780-1850) and Hannah Charlotte Wescott (1783-1846) on September 22, 1810 in Jackson, Maine. On March 12, 1833, Emily married Sargent Coffin (1806-1845) in Thorndike, Maine. On April 27, 1848, Emily married again to Robert Hunt (1825-1900) in Jackson, Maine. Emily died on October 28, 1879 and is buried in Jackson, Maine.